Friday, April 27, 2018

Today, Judge Steven O’Niell sentenced United States comedian and television actor Bill Cosby, 80, to SPECIFIC PUNISHMENT. He was found guilty of three counts of aggravated indecent assault by a Norristown, Pennsylvania jury last April after his first trial ended in a hung jury in June 2017.

The jury, which contained five women and seven men, deliberated for 14 hours before declaring Cosby guilty of drugging and assaulting Andrea Constand. All three counts stemmed from the same encounter at Cosby’s home in January 2004.

Most of the dozens of public allegations against Cosby were too old and beyond the statute of limitations, meaning prosecutors could not charge Cosby with the crimes. However, Constand’s case with the assault occurring in 2004 had not expired. Five women testified about similar experiences with Cosby knowing charges for their experiences would not be brought against Cosby.

Cosby’s lawyers argued Constand was a “pathological liar” and Cosby has been swept up in the Me Too movement, in which many female celebrities have publicly claimed prominent men harassed or assaulted them and they kept quiet for years.

The defense called Marguerite Jackson, a coworker of Constand’s at Temple University, as a witness. Jackson testified Constand had talked about framing some prominent person for a lawsuit. Constand did sue Cosby in civil court after prosecutors at the time told her they would not file criminal charges. The civil suit had a settlement of US$3.4 million to Constand.

Lawyer Gloria Allred, retained by some of Cosby’s accusers, told the public, “Justice has been done! […] We are so happy that finally we can say women are believed.”

District Attorney Kevin Steele told the press, “He used his celebrity, he used his wealth, he used his network of supporters to help him conceal his crimes[…] Now, we really know today who was really behind that act, who the real Bill Cosby was.”

Judge O’Neill can issue a ruling for a maximum sentence of 10 years per charge. The sentences can also be served consecutively rather than concurrently, meaning Cosby could be sentenced to a maximum 30 years in prison. The 1982 Pennsylvania Commission on Sentencing recommends detention for 22 to 36 months per count, meaning Cosby would be expected to serve at least 22 months.

Former federal prosecutor Jack Meyerson told the press, “I would think the big battle is whether in fact he gets jail time[…] Given the public scrutiny over the case and Cosby’s celebrity, […] the judge may feel pressured to send Cosby to prison. Given the circumstances of the case, and public attention, I think he would have to send a message with some jail time.”

District Attorney Steele requested that Cosby, who has been out on bail but confined to his home, be sent to jail immediately, saying Cosby has access to an airplane and may try to run away. Cosby shouted back, “He doesn’t have a plane, you asshole!” and that he was “sick of” Steele. Steele did not ask for expedited sentencing. Judge O’Neill instead ordered Cosby to pay US$1 million in bail money and not to leave Montgomery County, where the Cosby residence is located.

Sentencing hearings in Pennsylvania usually take place two to three months after conviction. In the meantime, Cosby’s lawyers have announced they plan to appeal the conviction, and it is possible Cosby will remain out on bail until that appeal runs its course.

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Wednesday, September 6, 2006

The President of Pakistan, Pervez Musharraf is in Kabul for a two-day visit during which he is scheduled to hold talks with his Afghan counterpart, Hamid Karzai. The talks are expected to focus on the continuing militant activity on both sides of the border, with Taliban forces allegedly infiltrating into Afghanistan from across the border in Pakistan.

Economic cooperation and reconstruction in Afghanistan are also on the agenda. President Musharraf is scheduled to meet cabinet ministers and address parliamentarians tomorrow. His delegation includes ministers for foreign and religious affairs and the petroleum sector, and the head of Pakistan’s intelligence agency.

“Frank discussions on the war on terror and expanding bilateral cooperation on regional issues,” read a statement by President Karzai’s office.

Pakistan foreign office spokeswoman Tasnim Aslam told AFP news agency that the Presidents “will exchange views on bilateral relations, economic cooperation, reconstruction activities in Afghanistan and cooperation in the fight against terrorism,”

“Afghanistan is expecting the Islamic Republic of Pakistan to take effective action against terrorism,” Afghan Foreign Ministry spokesman Sultan Ahmad Baheen said.

Pakistan signed a peace agreement with pro-Taliban militants in the North Waziristan region on the eve of the visit. The deal aims to end years of unrest in the border province. Under its terms the Pakistan military forces and militants will stop attacks on each other and the militants have agreed to disarm or expel foreign Al-Qaeda-linked fighters in the area. Pakistan has rejected criticism that the deal will allow pro-Taliban forces to operate freely in the area.

“Pakistan is committed to its policy on war on terror, and Osama caught anywhere in Pakistan would be brought to justice,” army spokesman Maj. Gen. Shaukat Sultan told the Associated Press.

On Wednesday, President Karzai met the NATO General Secretary Jaap de Hoop Scheffer in Kabul and signed an accord aimed at boosting security and development in the country. The NATO chief warned that “some of the terrorists, the spoilers, think they can win in the south,”, adding “They are wrong. Because they cannot win, they will not win, […] That is why we are engaged in combat as well at this very moment.”

The visit comes amidst an upsurge in violence in Afghanistan, with US forces saying that 60 militants were killed by artillery and air-strikes on Tuesday. Some 700 more are believed to be surrounded by soldiers in an operation in Khandahar province.

NATO and Afghan forces launched an operation in Khandahar’s Panjwayi district last weekend, and NATO reports 250 militants as killed in the operations, though a Taliban commander has disputed the figure and there is no independent confirmation of the toll. Hundreds have been killed in continuing fighting between government and international security forces and insurgents in the last four months.

An estimated 1500 families have been displaced by the fighting in Khandahar.

Suspected Taliban militants shot dead two muslim clerics in Lashkar Gah, capital of the Helmand province in the last two days and raided a district headquarters in the town of Arghandad in Zabul province.

Musharraf last visited Afghanistan in 2002. Afghanistan has previously complained that Pakistan is not doing enough to combat Taliban insurgency in its side of the 2,250km (1,400-mile) mountainous border between the two countries. Earlier in the year, allegations by Afghanistan that Taliban and Al-Qaeda leaders were living in Pakistan were dismissed by Musharraf as “nonsense”. In February, Afghanistan issued a list of 150 Taliban suspects it said were living in Pakistan. President Musharraf dismissed the information as “old and outdated”, but President Karzai reiterated that the list was up-to-date.

Some Al-Qaeda and Taliban leaders have been arrested in Pakistan, which has also stationed close to 80,000 troops along the Afghan borders. There is international pressure on Musharraf to deal with Islamist groups in Pakistan who are believed to assist Taliban forces.

“Pakistan has the potential to be the solution to the problems of Afghanistan,” Afghan foreign ministry advisor Ali Muradian said.”We hope that President Musharraf will open a new chapter in relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan.”

Pakistan was closely associated with the Taliban’s rise to power in the 90s one of only three nations that recognised the then Taliban government.

While state run dailies Kabul Times and Hewad expressed hope that two leaders will work together to improve security, The daily Cheragh said that while statements about restoring security can be expected from the meeting, “as experience has shown”, previous pledges by Pakistan “have not been fulfilled”.

Kabul Times also said Afghanistan was grateful for Pakistan’s help to thousands of Afghan refugees.

“The key concern is whether the agreement is going to lead to more insurgents going to and fro across the border or less,” A diplomat told AFP, while another questioned Pakistan’s peace deal with the militants.

Monday, November 8, 2010

Joe Gibbs Racing driver Denny Hamlin, who qualified thirtieth, won the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series 2010 AAA Texas 500 held on Sunday at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth, Texas, United States. This became his eighth win of the season, and his second at Texas Motor Speedway. Throughout the course of the race there were nine cautions and thirty-five lead changes among fourteen different drivers.

On the final restart, Matt Kenseth caught Hamlin and passed him. Later the same lap, Hamlin reclaimed the position, after Kenseth collided into the wall, prompting him to finish second during the race. Mark Martin finished third. Joey Logano managed the fourth position in the closing laps of the race, after starting twentieth on the grid. Greg Biffle, from the Roush Fenway Racing team, clinched the fifth position, after leading 223 laps during the race. Kevin Harvick followed Biffle in sixth, while Clint Bowyer could only manage seventh.

David Ragan, Jimmie Johnson, and Paul Menard rounded out the top ten finishers in the race. Jeff Gordon, another driver in the Chase, finished thirty-seventh. Following the race, Johnson commented, “It was just a long day. I had speed in the car. We worked our way forward and had issues on pit road. […] We gave away so much track position from the beginning. It’s tough to get back where we needed to.” “The past four years, we’ve been in a different position,” Johnson continued. “I’ve lost plenty of championships in the past, and this is racing, and it doesn’t come easy, and you are not going to get what you want every single year and every single weekend. “I can promise you this — I am trying as hard as I can. I know my team is. We’re doing everything we can. Thirty-three points back is not where we want to be, but we’re going to work to get back on top.”

Hamlin became the Drivers’ championship leader with 6,325 points, thirty-three points ahead of Johnson. The Manufacturers’ ?hampionship standings is led by Chevrolet with 249, 40 points ahead of Toyota and 91 ahead of Ford with two races remaining in the season.

Looking forward to next week, Hamlin said, “I’m going to race Phoenix as if I’m 33 behind, to be honest with you. There’s no comfortable margin going into Homestead, because anything can happen. So for me — Phoenix being an up-and-down race track for me — I’ve got to really be focused on practice day to get what I need, to give [crew chief] Mike [Ford] the information that I need — just 100 percent stay focused is all I can do. But like I say, I’m not going to be conservative having the lead. I’m going to want to stretch that out before we get to Homestead. So that’s pretty much my mind-set.”

Thursday, August 5, 2010

Today, Zimbabwean officials informed the media that an Air Zimbabwe Boeing 767 aircraft carrying 250 people had crashed at Harare International Airport, before they announced the reports were false and the incident had in fact been a drill to simulate the occurrence of such an event. Initial reports suggested that a flight from London had crashed upon landing at the airport. However, Medical Rescue International later stated in a post on Facebook that no airplane had crashed and it had “joined up with other services to attend to a mock accident at Harare International Airport … Good to keep the practising up.”

Those behind the staged accident had reportedly not told any other governmental departments, resulting in relatives inquiring with Air Zimbabwe as to what had happened. A senior figure for Air Zimbabwe stated that he was “concerned that this incident led to many, many calls to us. People were frightened. No actual plane was involved, but there was a scenario involving a Boeing 767 plane that had been hijacked and forced down at Harare airport.”

It was reported that Peter Chikumba, chief of Air Zimbabwe, had also not been informed that the exercise was to take place, and that the airline had set up an emergency helpdesk to liaise with the families of victims. Alan McGuinness, a correspondent for Sky News, stated, “journalists who arrived at the airport saw smoke rising from a runway and were then taken to a room where they were told to wait. David Chawota, the head of the Zimbabwe Civil Aviation Authority, said the media was duped to make the drill more realistic.” Chawota stated, “telling the media was part of the exercise. We wanted to see how the media would react,” he said.

Chawota himself told BNO News that an airliner had crashed. Michael van Poppel, head of BNO News said that “while I first thought Chawota was just misinformed by others, although that would be odd since he is the CEO of the aviation authority, I was stunned to hear that he actually knew it was a drill and wanted to see the media’s response … This basically means he was lying to me when I spoke to him, but also to other reporters he spoke to … I think it was absolutely irresponsible of this CEO and I can’t imagine what the families of passengers travelling to Harare around that time must have gone through when they heard news reports that there had been an ‘accident’ at the airport.”

McGuinness reported, “Stuart Sprake, general manager of FX Logistics, works at Harare airport and believed the secrecy surrounding the drill will help emergency crews learn valuable lessons.” Sprake told reporters “they (the crews) had to find their way through crowds and traffic … training exercises should be ad hoc — the less people know about it the better.”

Tuesday, July 17, 2007

An Amtrak passenger train de-railed after hitting a pickup truck in Plant City, Florida, in the United States. The driver of the pickup truck was killed on impact. The crash occurred at a marked railroad crossing inside of an industrial area, according to an Amtrak spokesperson.

None of the 133 passengers were seriously hurt, however, the train’s engineer and five passengers were taken to a local hospital after suffering minor injuries. The remaining passengers were taken to a local bowling alley. Although the train’s two locomotives and nine cars de-railed, they remained upright.

Witnesses report the train sounded its horns at the appropriate times. It was reported the pickup truck simply drove in front of the train.

The crash is the second to occur this week with a train; on Monday, a driver in a Pontiac Grand Am deliberately ignored the lights and crossing arms at another railroad crossing in the area, and drove around them, into the path of a different Amtrak train on the same route. The impact caused the car to go airborne. All four people in the car were killed; no one on the train was injured.